Juniors and their parents filled the Sullivan Arts Center Aug 29, 2022 for “The Junior Experience” led by the Associate Principal for College & Career Readiness, Bettie-Lynn Stark, helping students prepare for senior year. 

“I feel like a great new deal of information was given to me to be better prepared for the future,” Junior Ryan Kate Walker said. “I feel very confident going into junior year and less stressed about the ACT and SAT.”

Stark introduced the “handy dandy notebook”, better known as the “Preparing for Senior Year” booklet. Parents and students went through the booklet and discussed the contents in depth .

“The ‘Preparing for Senior Year 2024’ book is a great resource for students and their parents during this exciting time in their lives,” Stark said. “It has something for everyone whether they are considering college, workforce or military.” 

Students listened to her talk about the ACT and SAT; specifically about how to study for the college readiness tests. Naviance and Khan Academy are the websites recommended by Stark.

“The information given about the ACT and SAT make me feel more confident about taking that next step,” Junior Will Ramage said.

The whole goal of “The Junior Experience” is to make college plans easier and less stressful for everyone involved. Teachers and administrators are there for us every step of the way as juniors head down the road to senior year.

“It was eventful. [Stark] explained in detail a lot of things I had questions about,” Junior Salem Alonge said. “It cleared up a lot of doubts I had about my next steps towards college, and honestly, it encouraged me to keep trying to get to a place where I feel confident enough to apply for college.”

Overall, many juniors left the Sullivan Arts Center feeling good and prepared about future plans, no matter what they may be.“I truly want students to be just as excited about their plans after high school as they are about graduating from high school,” Stark said. “The Junior Experience is a program designed to emphasize the importance of the junior year as a year for students to explore colleges and careers for their future while immersing themselves in extracurricular and academic pursuits in high school.”